Anna Sophie Waters, Rafael Dobmann & Arved Batzel (Heidelberg University)
Student lecture followed by a get-together
The diverse geomorphological and geological conditions of Southeast Asia with its wide river deltas, karst landscapes and highlands have a lasting impact on social development and land use in Vietnam. As a result of anthropogenic climate change, the country is subject to strong processes of change and an increased risk of natural disasters. Climate shifts and changing environmental conditions can be reconstructed in paleoarchives over thousands of years. Beyond climate and geology, historical and ethnic dynamics are also decisive for the agricultural development and prosperity of the various regions of the country. The two-week excursion offered insights into the interplay of physical and human geography, particulary evident in the Central Highlands, which are dominated by ethnic miniorites, and the karst regions in the north of Vietnam.
